Rutland Watersports — Attraction in England

AVOID AVOID-Where to start??? Activity good, but WOW the place is run by teenagers who think they are the only ones that have had a private education!! Neglected to inform us that the photographer (that they advertise on their website to take professional photos of you, member of family/friend etc on your activity day) wouldn’t be present, so as a result no memories/pictures/mementos of the day were recorded!! When I emailed to point this fact out, was offered in way of explanation that the photographer was ill and they couldn’t get another one till 1pm have a £10 voucher off for next booking for your two children to use,which you think, well it’s not bad, but then you find out someone who has one child gets the same goodwill gesture, then they say you will get a 50% discount code then also pointing out that as the activity was okay then don’t expect anymore as it was the photographer who let you down-No the photographer let Rutland waterpark down and then Rutland waterpark let us the customers down by not informing us that a photographer wouldn’t be there to take photos etc but they can’t see this and they refused to understand that-after a week of negotiations still nothing had came through, other than a few insults and emails telling me to expect code, insinuations that I don’t understand what they are saying to me (I do, I just don’t agree with them) I am sure there will be some comeback about how generous they have been, it’s not generous when their company were the ones that failed to inform spectators there would be no photographer so all of those memories from the day will be lost, they haven’t sent a code through for 50% off and refuse to change their stance on the goodwill gesture-so if you spend £100 here and something goes wrong expect a recompense to the same value as someone who spent £20!! Customer service...

Sorry, but I am having to update my review from 5 stars to 1 star for the following reasons:

(1) It's too expensive for single days. It cost me £25 for windsurf launch with my own kit and £10 for parking from 2pm till after 6pm. No doubt I would be bankrupt, if I would have paid for a full day's parking too. This is simply too expensive for me personally. I will be going to the coast or other reservoirs in future, unless things change. (2) I used come for a half day in the past and the cost was lower. An excellent idea and what you'd expect. This is no longer an option. Why did you get rid of that? £25 is simply too expensive if you arrive at 2 or 3pm. Family commitments mean that I can't always make use of the whole day. (3) The parking used to be included in your launch fee and you would expect that. It then strangely went to you having to also pay for parking, but we could get that for half the price. We now have to pay for full priced parking. Seems greedy. I don't mind paying a reasonable fee. I understand that there are facilities and staff who need to be paid and I feel that in this area, nothing needs to change. The staff are very helpful, friendly and knowledgeable. That aside, these are the actions required:

(1) The parking should be free if you're paying a fee to launch. You're being just too gree-dy. (2) Bring back half day reduced pricing, e.g. £15 after 2pm.

Please ensure that the CEO of Anglian Water sees this message and that changes are made. Water companies already have brand damage for other reasons, and these small changes will help improve your standing.

Always remember that water falls freely from the sky and you can't build houses on it. It's free to use the sea, so come on... make some changes and put the lake fees back how...

This review is for Rutland (Whitwell) Water sports. I have only excellent things to say about the service they provide here. The facilities are great and the safety management both on and off the water are up to the mark. If you are looking to hire a canoe, kayak, Stand Up Paddle board, etc. They have a large range to suit all ages and abilities and prices are very reasonable per hour. All I will say is that they can get very busy on a nice day so I would recommend arriving when they open (09:30) to avoid the rush. For anyone with their own craft you will know how difficult it is to find a lake to launch on without being a club member or having to leap through firey hoops of rules and regulations. Here all you need is your own insurance (which you will already have through British Canoeing, etc. I'm sure) and £20 per craft, you also get free parking for the whole day and if you're launching more than one craft you get a 10% discount. I guess the only down side is that NO inflatables are allowed (except SUP's - you can't buy a cheap SUP) which is totally understandable as the quality of inflatables varies enormously. On a personal note, the staff are nothing but courteous, well informed...